Nginx reverse proxy for MySQL - mysql

Question

I'm trying to use a reverse proxy for mysql. For some reason this doesn't work (where mysql-1.example.com points to a VM with MySQL).
upstream db {
server mysql-1.example.com:3306;
}
server {
listen 3306;
server_name mysql.example.com;
location / {
proxy_pass http://db;
}
}
Is there a correct way to do this? I tried connecting via mysql, but doens't work

Answer 1

Make sure your config is not held within the http { } section of nginx.conf. This config should be outside of the http {}.
stream {
upstream db {
server mysql-1.example.com:3306;
}
server {
listen 3306;
proxy_pass db;
}
}

Answer 2

You're trying to accomplish a TCP proxy with an http proxy, which is wrong.
Nginx can do the TCP load balancing/proxy stuff but the syntax is different.
look at https://www.nginx.com/resources/admin-guide/tcp-load-balancing/ for more info

Answer 3

It should be possible as of nginx 1.9 using TCP reverse proxies.
You need to compile nginx with the --with-stream parameter.
Then, you can add stream block in your config like #samottenhoff said in his answer.
For more details, see https://www.nginx.com/resources/admin-guide/tcp-load-balancing/ and http://nginx.org/en/docs/stream/ngx_stream_core_module.html.

Answer 4

Nginx plus (paid) has proper option to do that. Another way to let the docker container access to host database directly.